Chapter 2

"What kind of scent?" he asked, calm enough that even he was surprised.

Brandon narrowed his eyes slightly. "Hard to say. Kind of like cedar, but also... something animal."

Jamie's heart skipped a beat. He knew exactly what it was. It was the pheromone scent unique to the Wildkin. No matter how much perfume or odor blocker he used, that inborn scent clung to him like a shadow.

"Maybe it's my detergent," Jamie lied without changing expression. "My roommate has a cat. Sometimes it rubs against my clothes."

Brandon watched him for a few seconds, but didn't press the issue.

After dinner, Brandon's assi1stant, David Grant, handed Jamie a thick contract. Brandon would provide housing, living expenses, and anything he needed. In return, Jamie had to be on call and play the role of a convincing partner. The term was one year.

At the end of that year, Brandon would give him enough money to buy an apartment downtown, and after that they would owe each other nothing.

Jamie signed it almost without hesitation.

The day he moved into the apartment Brandon had arranged for him, Jamie stood in the entryway for a long time.

It was a duplex penthouse in the city center, with the skyline spread beyond the floor-to-ceiling windows and sunlight washing everything gold.

The closet was full of custom clothes in his size, the fridge was packed with organic food, and the bathroom even had a massage tub.

Jamie stepped barefoot onto the soft carpet. As his toes sank in, the soft, fuzzy sensation made him nearly purr with comfort. Under his clothes, his tail swayed lightly, and his ears kept peeking through his hair. It felt amazing.

Jamie had never lived anywhere this nice in his life. Compared to the leaking room in the Wildkin district and cardboard under an overpass, this place was basically heaven.

And all he had to do in return was eat with one man, sleep with him, and show up now and then at social events.

Jamie threw himself onto the huge bed, rolled around twice, then buried his face in the pillow and took a deep breath. Brandon almost never spent the night here. He came, got straight to the point, and left afterward.

That was probably for the best.

Jamie rolled onto his back and stared at the ceiling. He needed a space that was completely his own, because his body carried a huge secret.

He wasn't only Wildkin. Among the Wildkin, he had an extremely rare dual-sex physiology, with two complete reproductive systems. It meant he could get pregnant.

For a kept Wildkin with no legal identity, pregnancy was basically a death sentence. So he hid his medication in the most secret place possible and took it every day, always on time.

As long as nothing went wrong, he could get through this one year safely, take the money, and disappear to a small city where nobody knew him.

Jamie closed his eyes and prayed silently. 'Please, let nothing go wrong.'

But something still did.

Things went wrong on Brandon's birthday. Jamie was told to attend a private dinner at Brandon's estate. He dressed in a deep blue velvet suit with a delicate brooch at the collar that even

His features were unnervingly fine to begin with. Soft jawlines paired with slightly upturned eyes lent him an unknowing charm beneath his cool aura.

David froze for a second whenever he saw him and then quickly looked away.

There weren't many people at the dinner, all Brandon's business partners. Jamie sat quietly beside him, playing the role of a capable companion, pouring wine, smiling, and chiming in at the right moments.

Every so often, Brandon rested a hand at his waist, the warmth of his palm seeping through the thin fabric and heating Jamie's skin.

Everything was going smoothly until dessert was served.

It was an elegant mousse cake dusted with edible gold, topped with a bright red fruit.

That fruit gave off a strange scent, like every smell Jamie loved most had been crushed into one and shot straight into his nose, hitting the most primal part of his brain.

Jamie's pupils shrank. It was a rare plant called Crimsonberry. To humans, it was just a tasty fruit. To the Wildkin, it was the strongest pheromone catalyst there was.

And right in front of him sat one of them.

Jamie's breathing turned ragged. Under the table, he clenched his pant leg so hard his nails nearly dug into his flesh. He had to stay in control to avoid making other's attention.

But the scent kept getting stronger, like an invisible hand slowly prying open the disguise he had worked so hard to maintain.

"What's wrong?" Brandon asked from beside him.

Jamie lifted his head and forced out a smile in a peaceful voice which made himself surprised, "Nothing. The cake looks really good."

Using every bit of strength he had, he pushed the Crimsonberry aside and only ate a small bite of mousse. Even so, that scent had already seeped into his body.

He could feel his tail stirring beneath his clothes and the roots of his ears prickling, ready to pop out at any second.

As soon as the dinner ended, he all but ran back to the apartment.